Five men arrested in a string of La Porte thefts

Five men have been arrested after a string of thefts and burglaries this month in La Porte, including one who was arranging to sell stolen items to an undercover police officer, officials said.

Taylor Ashton Ellard, 20, of La Porte, was charged with burglary of a motor vehicle on Wednesday. Police said he advertised several of the stolen items for sale and undercover officers were corresponding with him.

His arrest was linked to the burglary of eight vehicles in the Glen Meadows subdivision, officials said.

In another case, Ivory Whitfield, 32, of Pasadena, was arrested after residents in the Brookglen subdivision reported seeing a suspicious person walking in the neighborhood carrying a flashlight. Whitfield was arrested on outstanding warrants and is linked to four vehicle burglaries, officials said.

In another case, three people were arrested after residents in the Lomax area reported tires being stolen from a parked sport utility vehicle, police said.

Raul Martinez, 22, of Pasadena, Julio Cesar Chapa, 19, and Julio Cesar Martinez, 18, both of Houston, were charged with theft. The men were linked to three additional felony theft cases in the Fairmont Park West subdivision, police said.